In Part 3 of the Bad Bayou 2018 series, we had all our LEDs installed and I vowed not to add any more, so naturally I had to add some more. Just one more flashing welding effect set and a few individual flickering LEDs for a campfire… and one more LED spotlight from our metal […]
Here’s the penultimate article for the 2018 MTL themed, Halloween Bad Bayou N scale shadowbox. That really is a mouthful! In the last article we were painting LED strip lights and really setting up for the addition of even more LEDs and LED effects. Well clearly, we got a bit obsessed since then. I am […]
After we finished Part 1 of this series, we realized the brass toggle switch we’re using for the main power was installed upside down! Quickly ordering a new switch, we then dug the “incorrect” switch out of the epoxy used to mount it in the shadowbox with a rotary tool. So… funny story, the original […]
I’ve been using more loose, small LEDs lately in various projects recently and soldering them can be a bit of a trick. While it is possible to use regular solder from a spool, I thought I’d give solder paste a try. Solder paste is a thick, sticky material made up of small (very small!) solder […]
For years I’ve used a simple swing arm magnifying lamp when I need to do close-up model work, and while it’s not particularity fancy, it does a reasonably good job. I recently saw a few folks using a new style of lighted headband magnifier and thought I’d pick one up over at Amazon. The new […]
There was a recent post on a forum talking about revitalizing some old, corroded track and the product NO-OX-ID A-SPECIAL electrical grease was brought up in the conversation. This is one of those products you hear about from time to time, make a mental note to buy but never actually get around to buying it; […]
Often we’ll see a thread on a model train forum that asks the question, can model railroading be considered art? This question never fails to deliver a wide range of opinions that will go in circles and often end up back at the original question… can a model railroad actually be considered to be art? […]
I recently read about BlueRail Trains and their new control system for trains, but not the sort of control system I’m used to seeing. Not DCC, but one that can be run right alongside DCC and doesn’t need a lot of hardware in the middle. A system that looks incredibly elegant to me that requires […]
During a recent YouTube poking around session, I came across a model railroad video that just made me smile. Not that I wasn’t impressed with the On30 scenery (I was), and not that I didn’t appreciate the quality of the video production (I did), but the video just made me happy enough to watch it […]
I wasn’t going to start listening to Christmas music early this year… until I did. Ah well, can you really ever have too much Christmas, too early? Yes, I know it’s sappy, over-sentimental, cutesy, cornball, mushy, saccharine, etc., etc. Hey, I play with trains all day, so I’d be right at home in this little […]
I just wanted to wish all our Raildig readers and customers a very Merry Christmas. Enjoy these wonderful days and nights of the season with family and friends and have an eggnog , apple cider, mulled wine… you get the idea. Below is a nice 3 hour Yule Log with some crackling Christmas music to […]
I tend to build small dioramas and layouts, and I find scene edges (as well as cuts through the scenery) are always a little tricky. Usually we don’t have tons of free space to always make nice gentle hills or rock cuts so we need to get a little creative. For this article I wanted […]
Last year, 2017, we built the Bad Bayou, Micro-Trains Line inspired, N Scale Shadowbox for Halloween. As often happens, we ran a little short on time. I’ll give some blame to a nor’easter that knocked out power for a day on October 30th 2017, but I’ll take the hit too… there’s always too little time. […]
To add a nice extra bit of realism, I’ve always liked to look of exposed tree roots on a model train layout. Roots creeping out from cuts in the earth or even from rock faces add a nice touch to any scene. You’ll need to do a little judicious root hunting to get the right […]
Lots of model railroaders use Q-Tips cotton swabs for cleaning hard to reach areas on their trains, track and turnouts. Having worked extensively in the smaller scales, Z and N, the cotton fibers that can / will come loose from a Q-Tip and find their way in to gears, wheels, track joints and all other […]
Rokuhan recently, and in a very welcome move, introduced their Shorty Z scale locomotive chassis. This new Z scale chassis reminds me of the Kato N scale series of powered chassis, the 11-xxx series. Both are very inexpensive, nice little runners and ready to be used for all sorts of DIY projects. The new Rokuhan […]
